Fascinating Facts - Window Grills!

Here is a photograph, taken from my front window, as you can see there are metal grills adorning the front, a very common convention in Spain. I've always wondered why, well today I found out!

It has long been common practice to fit window grills to Spanish homes; it is said to be a cultural tradition, where an unmarried woman could safely talk to a male suitor, from relative safety, behind a grilled window or door.

Barred windows have their roots in the Moorish architecture of the past. At a time when glass was expensive or in many cases non existent, bars or grills on windows were used as a security measure. This has not only become part of Spanish culture, but also a necessary requirement.

Grilled windows allow a household to keep windows and doors open, during the hot summer months, without fear of being broken into. Today it is also a feature that many Spanish insurance companies demand, to insure properties, especially in more rural areas. Apart from anything else, the grills give an aesthetically pleasing aspect to a home and can be used to hang ones smalls out to dry, as I often do; functional, practical and traditional, typically Spanish and a must for the security conscious!